A deck of cards
by Kiako Ornitier
Summary: A new adventure starts, when someone attacks Nancy and a mysterious boy appears on the scene. The Paper and Mr. Drake find a new partner that may be able to help Nancy regain her memories. Rating for voilence and maybe language. RR Please!
1. Chapter 1

I do not own the R.O.D characters, owned by the respectful owners. I own Shuffles, no stealing! First R.O.D fic, be nice Please? Dman it! Sorry, just all the times when I uploaded it it wouldnt let the indents show up, so I'm sorry if they don't ; Not my fault! Just to let you know that!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A lone figure stood on the edge of a cliff that hung over a city gazing off into the distance

"One day, I'll get you" it muttered shuffling a deck of cards constantly "I promise you that" with that it strode off into the city.

After folding a paper crane and letting it flutter away, Yomiko Readman watched as her friend Nancy stared at the flying paper bird in awe

"Sugoi!" Nancy said reaching up to touch the fluttering crane. Yomiko smiled and conentrated on making the paper land on her friend's finger. Before the crane landed, a black icicle tore through the paper crane and struck Nancy through her chest

"Nancy-san!" Yomiko cried and flew to her friend's side.

Nancy's eyes were starting to grow dark and the color leaked away from her face as the blood poured from the wound.

Drawing a piece of paper from her travel case, she quickly surveyed the area and dragged Nancy behind the bench

"Show yourself!" she ordered only to have a gaint black icicle tear through the bench reducing it to splinters, luckily, the icicle missed both Nancy and herself, dodging another icicle, she threw the paper into a nearby tree. She quickly grabbed more paper when she saw something black streak from the tree before a couple of branches were hacked off, seeing one icicle falling directly above her and used the paper as a shield, suddenly, it began raining gaint icicles.

"Nancy!" throwing what paper she was using as a shield to protect Nancy, an icicle flew down and slashed her trenchcoat sleeve, gripping her arm and falling on one knee, anotehr barrage of icicles flew towards her

"This is it," she thought, "Here is where I die, and I still havn't finished reading that book yet..." Squeezing her eyes shut there was a flash of red and a wave of heat. Then, there was nothing.

Yomiko opened her eyes to see a dark red cloaked person with a hat standing in front of her, remember Nancy, she dashed to her side

"Nancy!" she called "Nancy-san!" tears began to well up in her eyes, then there was a shadow over her

"Excuse me..." it muttered, drawing a single playing card and pulling it's glove off with it's teeth, it made a sweeping motion near it's hand and watched it's blood run freely. Bending down beside Nancy, the person reached out to the black icicle still wedged in her body. On instinct, Yomiko threw one remaining piece of paper at the stranger only to watch it stop in mid air as soon as it left her fingers, the stranger raised a hand

"Don't worry, there is no need for violence," the person said and and closed their hand firmly, Yomiko nodded and watched at the paper crumble itself into a ball and begin burning into ashes.

Placing the bleeding hand on the black icicle, it quickly melted into water splashing over Nancy. Then taking out a deck of cards, shuffled them once and pulling a card from the deck, set it over Nancy's bleeding wound

"Queen of hearts" the person said and Yomiko gasped as Nancy's spilt blood began seeping back into her body and the wound closed. A couple of moments later, nancy's eyes fluttered open

"What-" she said weakly "Yomiko-chan?"

"Nancy-san!" Yomiko cried throwing her arms around the blue haired woman, then turned to where the mysterious person was only to find them gone.

"I didn't even get ot say thank you" she said looking around

"Are you ok Yomiko-chan?" Nancy asked, Yomiko turned ot her friend and smiled

"Hai" she said then thought "Who was that person? I didn't even see their face"

Joker sat at his desk sipping a cup of tea when there was a small ringing, Joker lazily pressed a button and a screen slid down with The Paper's anxious face on it.

"Joker-san!" she said excited "Nancy-san was attacked at teh hospital" Joker's eyebrows arched in interest

"Go on"

"During the attack, a strange person came and revived Nancy from the brink of death" she continued "Using playing cards!"

"Hm," Joker said sipping his tea again "I shall see into this, thank you The Paper"

"Hai"

"Meanwhile, report to DIET headquarters" he ordered "I'll get Mr. Drake here too"

"Roger" and with that, the screen went blank. Joker sighed and finished his tea

"Well, better get to work" he said and heard a soft knock on the door "Ah, Wendy!"

"Yes Joker-san?" she asked walking in, Joker silently counted down the seconds with his fingers.

Three.

Two.

Once.

Wendy squeaked triping on the corner of the rug and then quickly scrambled to her feet brushing herself off

"Yes?"

"I need more tea please" Joker said smiling. Wendy nodded furiously

"Hai, hai" with that she left the room.

Drake Anderson was molding a pot in his hands, All was peaceful. His daughter was watching intently while his wife was in the living room reading. Watcing the pot forming, he had nearly finished when his cell phone suddenly rang. Jumping up in surprise making the pot sag into itself, he quickly stopped his pottery wheel and groaned

"Jeez I thought I turned that thing off..." he wiped his hands on his apron and picked up his phone.

"Uh huh, yeah, ok..." he said, then his eyes widened

"Daddy why are your eyes all big and round?" hi daughter asked curiously

"Nothing nothing!" he said smiling then growled into the phone "I hate you Joker, you know that?" he heard Joker chuckle and hang up.

After packing a few things and bidding his family farewell, Drake set off to meet The Paper.

"God I really hate that Joker..." he grumbled shoving his hands in his pockets while waiting for a light to change to cross the street. When the light finally changed and he began walking across, he smirked

"Well," he thought "At least I'll have some fun" he reached the other end of the street and waited for another light to change. Then he heard a humming sound, as he strained to hear over the city noises, it started to sound like a car engine speeding. He shrugged it off, but as he was crossing, he saw a small boy wandering into the street following a bubble that floated in the air. Hearing the hum again, he looked at the otehr street and saw a bright red car speeding, just nearly upon the child.

Before he could move, something dark red streaked past him towards the boy.

"What the-?" he rushed ot the end of the street and began to step onto the road

"Stay where you are!"

There was the screaming of metal, the boys mother and the driver as the car scrunched together like a pop can. Steam poured out of what was left of the car's hood and something smelled like it was burning. When most of the steam cleared, they saw a clear picture of what had happened.

"Now I've seen everything" Drake said shocked.

There was a red cloaked strange boy with a hat holding the little trembling child in one arm with the other hand pressed against the grid of the car

"You shouldn't drive so fast," the stranger said tossing his head slightly to move his hair revealing one of his eyes, which glowed a ruby red "You could hurt somebody" Removing his hand while leaving the imprint of it in the car, he strode over to the boys mother

"I believe he is yours?" he said handing to boy to the mother who was in tears of fright and joy. The mysterious boy walked over the the scrunched car and with a playing card, cut open where the door might have been and pulled out the dazed and shocked driver.

"Anything broken?" the boy asked, the driver quickly backed away

"Y-You are Satan! Get away from me Devil!" he screamed and ran away into the crowd. Drake looked at the driver run and looked back at the wreckage to find the boy had left

"Whoa..." he said and felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Kinnichiwa Drake-san!" Yomiko said cheerfully and stared at the ruined, mangled car

"Oh my! What happened?"

"Some guy nearly turned a kid into road kill" Drake explained "But then this weird kid stepped in grabbing the kid and crushing the car with one hand"

"Really?" Yomiko asked amazed "How'd he look like?" As Drake listed off a few of the things, Yomiko began hopping foot to foot anxiously

"That's the person!" she sai "The person who saved Nancy-san!"

"What? Seriously? Stop confusing me woman" Drake asked raising his eyebrows

"Yes! Joker-san said he'd look into it and to go to DIET" Yomiko said

"Well we better get going then" Drake said shoving his hands in his pocket's once more.

At HQ, Yomiko and Drake waited in a room for Joker to come. Drake tapped his foot impatiently

"The Joker better hurry up before I beat him to a pulp if he get's here..." he growled picking up an apple that was lying in a fruit display and began tosing it in the air. Yomiko was silently reading her book with a funny smile on her face. After a couple more moments of silence, the door slowly opened and Joker began to step in

"Hello you two-" he then screamed as Mr. Drake whipped around and tossed the apple at his direction. Closing the door to avoid getting hit and hearing a loud thud, he slowly reopened it to see it Mr. drake would hurl anymore fruits at him, and when he found out that he wasn't going to at that moment, stepping into the room closing the door behind him and looked at the door to see the apple wedged into the wood of the door.

"'Bout time you showed up" Mr. Drake said

"Sorry, but-" he paused in font of Yomiko and pulled the book out of her hands. She blinked and looked around her and saw Joker holding her book

"Oh hello Joker-san!" she said then looked at where the apple was still wedged "What happened to the door?"

"Nevermind about that"

"So there has been an attack?" Drake asked

"Yes, but the problem is, we don't know who is behind it" Joker said "So that's why we called you here"

"To babysit Nancy?" Drake said sarcasticly while grinning

"Great idea Mr. Drake!" Yomiko said jumping form the couch "We'll do exactly that!"

"What?!"

"Excellent" Joker said "But first, I'd like you to meet your new partner, Wendy?"

Exactly on cue, Wendy came in followed by...

"You!" Yomiko and Drake both exclaimed at teh same time jumping up to their feet.

"This is one of our newest agents" Joker explained "Meet Agent Shuffles"

There in the doorway stood a boy standing over five foot five in height wearing a blood red cloak with a poncho a lighter color of the blood red over it with a brown cap that was tilted to the side hiding his right eye. His left eye was a ruby red that seemed to glow and in his hands, was a deck of playing cards that he shuffled over and over again.

Authors notes: Damn it! As soon as I watched Read Or Die with my friends, I've just gotten addicted to it! I know I haven't been working on my other fanfics lately, but I'll get righ to them! I'm on a roll here! But I asure you, I will get to work on those otehr fics. HOpe you like this! BYE!


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own the R.O.D characters. I own Shuffles and any other non related R.O.D character, no stealing! If there are no paragraphs, don't blame me, blame the thingy cause it won't let me see the paragraphs. Well, any hoo, Read on!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There was nothing but silence as Yomiko and Drake stared at Shuffles. The only part of his face that they could see was his eye and some of his hair, the rest of his face was concealed behind his high collar and slanting hat.

"You!" they both exclaimed again, Shuffles mearly raised his right arm in greeting and continued shuffling the deck of cards in his hands

"Oh, I see you've met" Joker said "Wendy can we have some tea?" she nodded and ran off

"Your the one who saved Nancy-san!" Yomiko cried noting that he wore a fignerless glove on his left hand and a whole glove on his right

"Is she doing well?" Shuffles said in almost a whisper

"Eh, Hai" Yomiko answered. He nodded and took a seat on a nearby couch shuffling his cards in his lap

"Good."

"So," Drake said taking a seat beside him "Have you been debriefed yet?"

"Inlighten me"

"Well," Yomiko said fixing her glasses "Out mission is to protect Nancy-san in case the attacker tried to attack her again"

"Hm," Shuffles said "If we're suppose to be protecting her and we're here, do you have other agents there to protect her until we arrive?"

"Um," Yomiko glanced at Joker who nodded

"I see," Shuffles said sliding the deck into his pocket and standing up.

"Where you goin'?" Drake asked, Shuffles remained silent and stood still and rigid.

The door opened as Wendy walked in carrying a tray of tea, the cups jingling together making all them nervous

"Here's the t-" Wendy started but of course, her foot began to slip beneath the rug.

"Whoa..." Yomiko said wide eyed just like everyone else in the room. Shuffles was standing there with Wendy underneath his arm and the tray of tea in his hand

"Be a bit more careful" he said putting Wendy upright and set the tea on the table, Everyone seemed to sigh in relief.

"Whoa, he got skills" Drake said taking a cup

"That was too close..." Yomiko said picking up a cup of tea and taking a sip "Mmm, tea...." Sitting back down, Shuffles picked up a cup as well pulling down the collar of his cloak. now they saw half of his face. His facial exspression seemed soft and kind, but there was no smile, high on his right cheek though was a burn mark, but other then that, they could see no more of his face due to the hat that slanted to the side.

"So," Shuffles finally said "Can we get on with the debriefing?"

When they walked towards the bench, Nancy stood and smiled

"Yomiko-chan!" she said cheerfully then looked at Mr. Drake and Shuffles

"Nancy-san" Yomiko said "These are my friends Drake-san and Shuffles-sama"

"Hiya" Drake said, Shuffles raised his arm in greeting and continued to shuffle cards.

"Hello" Nancy smiled then tilted her head ot the side when she saw Shuffles "

"Hm?"

"Do I know you?" she asked

"Remember that person I told you about?" Yomiko said "The one who saved your life?"

"Oh!" Nancy smiled again "Arigato!" Shuffles nodded.

Everyone found something to occupie themselves while their stay with Nancy, Course, Yomiko was reading with Nancy, and Shuffles was playing Cheat with Mr. Drake

" Three 5"

"Cheat"

"Damn it!" Drake cried as he collected the cards and handed Shuffles 50 cents

"You better smarten up if ya wanna win, you've nearly got the entire deck" Shuffles said with four cards in his hands

"Damn you youth....." Drake muttered placing down another card "One 2"

"I win" Shuffles declared putting down all his cards

"Cheat!" Shuffle turn over the cards to show four 3's

"I won" Shuffles said grinning behind his collar.

"Damn you kids these days!" Drake yelled slapping the cards along with 2 dollars on the ground for Shuffles to collect.

Hours passed, Yomiko was folding origami with Nancy and Shuffles decided to join them. Picking up a piece of paper, he began folding it, his hands moving quickly and in a matter of seconds, made a paper dragon.

"Holy!" Drake said from behind him, "You made that outta that teeny tiny piece of paper?" Shuffles nodded and handed the dragon to Drake, who examined it closely and cried out in surprise as teh dragon began to move and spew out fire like a real dragon.

"That was not funny Yomiko!" Drake yelled

"It wasn't me" Yomiko said. Shuffles began to laugh

"Why are you laughing?" Drake growled.

"Seems that Joker hasn't told you about my special abilities yet" Shuffles said "But I doubt that he knew in the first place" Holding up his hand, he did a lifting motion and Drake screamed as he began lifting into the air.

"Drake-san can fly?" Nancy said giggling

"Put me down!" Drake cried "I'm gonna get you for this Shuffles!" Then screamed again as he fell with a thud on the grass.

"I know more then that" Shuffles said pulling down his collar again and bit his thumb making it bleed

"Crazy person!" Drake said shaking his head "What are you gonna do now?"

Snaping his fingers, a flame lit up on teh tip

"If this involves setting me on fire," Drake said backing away "I don't want any part of it"

"Relax" Shuffles said extinguishing the fire and taking out his deck of cards again.

Suddenly, Shuffles stopped and stood up

"Something's coming" he warned the others drawing a card. There was a long silence as Mr. Drake snatched up his gun and Yomiko grabbed a handful of paper,

"Heh heh heh," a voice laughed and a dark shadow splashed out of the water creating a wave that crashed over them. Spining around with the reflexes of a cat, Shuffles quickly threw the cards as it barely missed the shadow, then dashing forward, wrapped his fingers around the intruders throat.

"Marco" he said

"Polo" the stranger said grinning.

The new stranger had short blue hair and bright green eyes wearing a simple deep blue trenchcoat, his right hand was also covered with a glove.

"Long time no see" Shuffles said tightening his grip

"Same to you," the other boy said then smirked "Yoshivu nee-san"

"Nani?" Yomiko said looking from Shuffles to the other boy "You two are brothers?"

"Don't use that name, the person by that name is dead" Shuffles growled his eyes blazing "My name isn't Yoshivu, my name is Shuffles!" with that Shuffles hurled the boy to a nearby tree and yanked off his right glove.

"Well, Yoshivu," the boy grinned also yanking off his right hand glove "I guess you did get some skills during the last few years, but unfortunatly" The boy's right hand suddenly began commpletly incased in black ice as it formed into a monsterous claw "I learned them first"

"Shut up!" Shuffles snarled and his right arm burst into flames also taking form of a claw, one of a dragons.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Mr. Drake said "Rewind and freeze! How the hell are you two brothers? And how the hell you you burning your arm?"

"Two words" Shuffles answred "Pyrokenisis"

"Are you sure that's two words?" Yomiko said cocking her head to the side and pushing Nancy behind her.

"How'd you end up with these losers?" the boy asked

"They're my companions, brother" Shuffles replied "Or should I say, Ryuku nee-san?" The boy narrowed his eyes

"I guess that was uncalled for," Ryuku said "Hand over the girl and you and your pitiful "companions" can live"

"And why," Shuffles said raising his clawed hand "Should I do that?"

"Are you challanging me now little brother?" Ryu smirked "Last time I remember you were at the brink of death last time we fought, if it weren't for the others-"

"Shut up!" Shuffles screamed dashing forward and swinging his claw.

Mr. Drake, Yomiko and Nancy watched as Shuffles and Ryuku fought, clawing, punching and kicking eachother.

"Wide open!" Ryu said as he plunged his claw into Shuffle's shoulder who at the exact moment, shoved a card into Ryu's shoulder as they both bled.

"What's wrong," Shuffles said "Are you playing with me? Or are you scared?"

"Silence fool!" Ryu said shoving his claw futher then jumped away as as mirage of bullets missed him.

"Damn" Drake cursed as he slammed in a new magazine "Shuffles! You ok?" Shuffles nodded and surveryed the area and not seeing his brother, ran to Yomiko and Nancy.

"The Paper, Get Nancy-san out of here to safety, I'll deal with my brother" he ordered then whiped around. Getting Yomiko and Nancy out of here alive was the only thing on his mind, then saw a shadow in the corner of his eye.

"Watch out!" Shuffles grabbed both Nancy and Yomiko and leapt away just as Ryuku's ice claw smashed into the ground

"Hold still! You'll die much faster that way!" Ryu laughed, Landing near Mr. Drake, Shuffles winced and turned towards him

"Get them out of here," he ordered and when Mr. Drake seemed to hesitate, he yelled "NOW! GO! That's an order!"

"Last time I checked, you weren't the one giving orders" Drake said

"Just go, otherwise you'll all end up dying" Shuffles grimaced rubbing his shoulder that still bled freely.

"But, you'll die from blood lose!" Yomiko cried

"That doesn't matter! Go now!" he yelled waving his arm at them.

Drake felt as if someone just slammed a jeep into him as he, Nancy and Yomiko were thrown by Shuffles psychic energy near the gate

"He must've really wantted us to go" Drake said rubbing his head

"Nancy!" Yomiko called to her friend "She fainted!"

"Ah crap..." Drake said "What an unlucky day."

"Your friends leaving so soon?" Ryu called from a nearby tree

"It's better off that they did go" Shuffles replied firing up his arm again "Now you can concentrate on me instead of them"

"Oh dear little brother," Ryuku laughed "I can't waste my time on you, already now I'm already ready to kill them" Shuffles was slightly taken a back by those words and then throwingt a card at Ryu, saw it was only an illusion.

"Fall! Damn you fall!" he heard Mr. Drake yell and turned around and began running towards them just as Drake and Yomiko got swatted into the wall like flies.

"Mission accomplished!" Ryu announced as he raised a sword of ice over Nancy, who was cowering in fear, all she saw was a red streak in front of her.

Why do you do this to yourself for these people?" Ryuku asked

"Because...." Shuffles gasped holding the sword in his stomache as more blood gushed out "I choose to!" he yanked the sword out and threw it aside and fell on one knee

"Shuffle-sama!" Yomiko cried dashing to her friend. Pushing Yomiko aside, Shuffles stood up gripping his wound

"Just stay behind me," he whispered to her then spoke up "Apparently Ryu, You forgot something about me"

"Oh?" Ryu said with a hint of amusment "Show me then"

"You forgot," Shuffles said shoving Yomiko back into Drake "My blood is flamable!" Suddenly red flames burst from his wounds and fire engulfed him

"Nancy! Go to Yomiko and Drake!" Shuffles barked as Nancy obeyed. With a roar, the flame around Shuffles changed from yellow, to blue, To hot white, the heat making his hat fly off

"This it from what you did to me five years ago!" he yelled, and latched himself onto Ryu.

"Let go of me! NO!" Ryu screamed trying ot pry Shuffles off "LET ME GO!!"

Yomiko and Drake shielded their eyes against the intense heat as Nancy hid her face in Mr. Drake's vest. There was the sound of hissing steam and Ryu's screams mixed in with Shuffles, then, there was nothing.

Uncovering her eyes, Yomiko watched in time to see Shuffles fall to the ground, his clothing nearly charred black.

"Shuffle-sama!" she cried and picked up Shuffles limb body, he was breathing deep breaths, which meant he was alive and sleeping, but all his wounds still leaked blood

"Shuffles!" Drake called "At least he's still alive, thank god we're at a hospital..."

Yomiko jumped as Shuffles stirred and tried to sit up

"Ouch...." he muttered staggering as he started to stand.

"Holy..." Drake said

"What? Is it so bad that I'm alive?" Shuffles grinned

"Are you human?" Drake asked with a look of disbelief on his face. For the first time, they heard Shuffles laugh

"I guess not" he said and looked at Nancy. Apparently, when he stood in the way of Ryuku's blade, his blood had splashed onto her white gown,

"You ok?" he asked, Nancy nodded and held out his hat

"Arigato" she smiled. He said nothing, but he took the hat and set it back into it's slant over his right eye.

"Man, last time I do that" he said brushing off the black that was on his clothes as it came off easily and in big clouds

"Heck even your clothes aren't normal!" Drake cried throwing up his hands "You are beyond normal!"

"I'll take that as a compliment"

As they bid Nancy farwell Shuffles stayed for a moment

"You take care now ya hear?" Drake said to Nancy

"I will" she said then looked at Shuffles

"Hm?"

"Shuffle-sama" she started towards him then wrapped her arms around him "Arigato" Shuffles cringed slightly at the pain, but ignored it and planted a feather light kiss on her forehead. Nancy began to blush

"It's to give you hope," he said and strode off with Drake behind him

"Show off," Drake said grinning "With all that hope stuff, what ya a ladies man?"

"Some of us need hope, something to hang onto" Shuffles replied "And besides, don't you have someone that's important to you? That you hold onto and say to yourself that your going to see them again?"

"Hell ya," Drake answered "Like my wife and daughter" Shuffles remained silent, but was shuffling cards again.

When Shuffles and Drake were far enough Nancy smiled

"My knight in shining armour" she said to Yomiko

"Heh heh" Yomiko giggled "Your starting to read as much as I do Nancy-san"

"It's just like out of a fairy tale" Nancy said "But a bit different"

"How?"

"This is real" Yomiko smiled

"Yo!" Drake called "Hurry up or we're leavng without you!"

"I have ot go now Nancy, but I'll come back tomarrow" Yomiko said running towards he friends "Bye!"

"Bye Yomiko-chan!" Nancy said waving.

Author notes: Ok, So this wasn't the best and there was too much Shuffles action, I'm, working on it! Well, I hope you liked this chapter, but I"m gonna give it a rest for now. School started and my brain hurts . WEll, I'll see you all later. Bye and thanks for reading!!


End file.
